O.B.I.F.'s SmithFly Switch Vest Review

I first came in contact with the SmithFly line of fishing gear when I purchased
my El Poquito,
which as you know (if you follow my ramblings), I love. I wrote a review and the right
person read it which is how I was able to get a “Switch Vest”
in my possession for this past joke of a winter. After I received it in the mail, I quietly
apologized to my L.L. Bean vest as I benched it like Wally Pips for the rest of
the season.

Borrowing cues from the pack mules of the United States, Ethan Smith of SmithFly designed this vest after the
universal M.O.L.L.E./P.A.L.S. rigging and load bearing equipment of the U.S.
Armed Forces. This is awesome because it
allows the Switch Vest to do something no other vest was capable of in fly fishing
to date...adapt. That’s right. You can
adapt the vest to suit you. Want a
pocket up high for your dry stuff, but only on your left side? Easy. Worried about snakes in the float tube
or bears on the Kenai? The vest has an
answer. Since it is loaded with P.A.L.S.
webbing you can attach a holster to it anywhere you want, just pick which one you want. Hemostats will fit anywhere (as does the El Poquito). I
say again...completely adaptable.
Needless to say, I couldn’t wait to begin testing this thing.

INITIAL RESPONSE:

Laying out flat on my bed the Switch Vest looked good. There is double stitching in the high stress
areas. The mesh chosen for construction
is flexible but firm. The webbing is
mil-spec both in its layout and material.
It did not come with any pouches so to complete the test I had to dig mine
out of storage. Thank you taxpayers! I
chose a handful that seemed like they would suit my needs and waited for the
weather to turn chilly. There are pockets galore on the interior, including a
full sized storage for your choice of hydration pouches. (Side Note: Since the back is also webbed you
can attach an extra one for long days or extended trips.) Lastly, right at the
base of the neck is a little D-Ring so you can secure your net. Not that it is needed since the webbing would
facilitate that equally well.

TESTING:

The Switch Vest itself is light and comfortable. However, I am 6’4” tall. I say that because the vest fit me width-wise
after some adjustments, since it’s fully adjustable, but rode high like some
super-motivated sports bra. This was
discouraging. Not because I put “fashion”
first, but because I didn’t want to look like Baby Huey
on the water. I called Ethan and
expressed my concern and he then explained
that I did not in fact, receive the midget version of the vest, but that it is
designed to fit like a standard fly vest; keeping all of your crap well above
the waterline. For “journalistic integrity”,
I went to my local fly shop to
verify. It is almost the exact same length
as the bigger-named vests carried there.
After trying it on with waders, it didn’t look bad at all and the
height allowed me to access the wader chest pocket (where I like to keep my
keys) without shucking the entire vest.
The only other serious problem I encountered was fly line getting
tangled. Not on the vest though, on the pouches.
I again called SmithFly’s Jefe and he assured me that the pouches he manufactures are zippered instead of
the buckled dumpster fires I own. The 1X
Pouch can be attached or worn separately; it also boasts a healthy array of features of it's own. Pure
freaking genius.

CONCLUSION:

I beat the crap out of this thing. I know I wasn’t supposed to, as it was only
loaned to me initially for long-term testing; but I treated it as bad as I
could without busting out a machete or a torch.
I left it in the Jeep,
and threw it around like Mardis Gras beads.
I thought eventually it might break down and become wet-rag flimsy but
it didn’t. I still think it is too short
for my liking when I am not wearing waders and the height of the vest does make
accessing any pockets on the back a two-man effort. That isn’t enough to deter me though, because
when you buy into the SmithFly product line, everything works together. There
is not a single other company out there manufacturing complete systems like
this to my knowledge. Pouches can go
from the Switch Vest, to the Switch Belt, to the Boat Bag, and back in mere
minutes. Aside from the shortness, the
only other concern I had with it was summertime use. That being said, the same shortness will
minimize that sexy-as-heck, lower-back sweat that comes from living a foot off
the surface of the sun. Over all, I am not a vest guy for nine months out of the
year. While no one system has every
answer, the Switch Vest is the fishing equivalent of sitting next to the smart
kid during finals.

AFTER ACTION:

I contacted Ethan Smith to ask about donating the vest for FlyStock, to which he agreed whole heartedly.
As sad as I was to see it go, I cannot thank him enough for his help in
that. You can bet that before the frost
settles on Central Texas later this year; I will own another one.